Once Upon a Time
by Shiningheart of ThunderClan
Summary: AU One-Shot. Law tells Kidd a story. Warning: character death.


**Shiningheart doesn't own One Piece.**

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"I'm going to tell you a story, and you're going to stay there and listen. Got it, Eustass-ya?" He paused, but there was no reaction. He wasn't expecting one, really. "Once upon a time, there was a boy and a girl. They were complete opposites, in both actions and words. He was calm and collected, never taking the bait but never running away. She was loud and brash and in your face, the first one to insult you but also the first to run to your aid.

"Every interaction between them involved an argument. Even if it was the stupidest thing, they'd bicker and fight about it because that's what they did. There was a certain fondness for their daily struggle, at least on the boy's side. He found himself falling in love with her and eventually told her.

"She laughed in his face and told him that she'd never like a guy who was so stiff and cold. When she walked from the room, she walked from his life. Fast forward years later, and that boy became a man. He grew a beard, got tattoos, and was attending Harvard when he met another man, his roommate for the next four years. This one was hard headed and stubborn as all hell, with broad shoulders and hair such a bright red that it was like God himself had colored it with blood.

"The two were complete opposites, in both actions and words. He was calm and collected, never taking the bait but never running away. The redhead was loud and brash and in your face. Every day they argued and bickered and fought, and the tattooed man found himself falling in love with him.

"But every day, he was reminded of _her._ That girl who laughed at him and left him dry. Surely this redhead would do the same thing. They were too alike for it to be any different. So the man with tattoos did all he could to push the redhead away, to convince himself it was better this way. He was sure the redhead with the fiery eyes would leave him if he confessed. The redhead wasn't making it easy. He was just… so damn _confusing_."

Law paused to sigh shakily and ran his hand through his hair, for once without his furry hat. He thought Kidd would appreciate it, since he'd always thought Law looked better without it. "One minute he'd be in your face, yelling at you, the next he'd be kicking the ass of someone else who insulted you. Whenever the tattooed man complained he was cold, the redhead would simultaneously tell him to suck it up and pull him closer to warm him up. When the tattooed man fell asleep on the couch in the apartment they'd been forced to share, he woke either in his bed or with a blanket over him.

"It was near graduation when everything blew up. It happened so suddenly the tattooed man, to this day, still doesn't remember everything clearly. One minute the roommates were arguing and bickering, as per normal. The next… The next the redhead was on the ground, bleeding from his chest. He'd taken a gunshot meant for the tattooed man."

Law felt his knees quivering and knew he'd fall soon. Rather than fall to the ground like a weakling, he knelt on the cold ground in front of the cold stone. "There was so much blood. The tattooed man tried to stop it, or at least stem it until help could arrive. He was a medical student, though, and knew the wound was fatal. With a hoarse voice, he asked the redhead why he'd do something so stupid."

There was a burning in his eyes, tears gathering as he prepared himself for the next part. It was always the hardest for him to recall at this time of year. "There was a look in those amber eyes. It was the softest the tattooed man had ever seen the redhead. The injured man laughed, blood trailing from the corner of his mouth, and he whispered…" Law gulped, not caring how loud it sounded in the silence of the graveyard. "He whispered… 'If you haven't figured it out by now, I'm not gonna tell you.'

"It was so damn like him to waste his last breath making a snarky comment. The light in those beautiful eyes went out, and the tattooed man was left with nothing but a memory and a question. 'What if? What if he'd gotten over his insecurities and had just told the redhead everything? Would they have been happy?'"

Law traced the words on the grave marker in front of him, allowing the tears to slip from his eyes. "Well, Eustass-ya? What do you think? Would we have been happy if I'd just told you I loved you?" A pleasant breeze blew by, and an unfamiliar warmth built up in his chest. He could almost feel Kidd's strong arms around him now, and had to resist the urge to press his face against the nonexistent body. "Yeah, I thought so. I'm sorry I was such a coward."

He placed two roses in front of the grave, one black and one red. Mourning and love. It seemed appropriate. "I need to go now, my shift at the hospital is starting soon and I really don't want to look like I've been crying. You know how Bepo is. If he thinks I'm sad, he'll start crying for me and then everyone else will join in and it'll just be one giant clusterfuck of idiots. I love you."

Law kissed his fingers and pressed it against Kidd's name, once again tracing the words there before leaving. Not that he needed to memorize them. He'd been the one to choose them, after all. _"Eustass Kidd. The greatest friend and worst enemy you'll ever have. 1993-2014. In memoria et mente."_ In memory and heart.


End file.
